Finder's Keepers
by MusicIsLove0717
Summary: When Nevaeh is sent to boarding school, she thinks her life is over, but then she meets the handsome and mysterious Aiden. The two fall for each other. But of course Aiden has a dark & seductive secret that could in the end be fatal to them both.
1. Welcome to My Life

"Hurry, Nevaeh! You're flight leaves in an hour!" my mother called up from the kitchen. whatever." I mumbled beneath my breath.

I'd just finished packing all the clothes I could into my 3 luggage bags when my cell phone rang. It was my best friend Katie. She was probably calling to whine about how much she was going to miss me…again.

I tapped the accept "button on my screen and answered, "Hey girl."

"Omigod Nevs! I can't believe they're really doing this. Just because you screwed up once doesn't mean they should ship you off to frickin' boarding school. It's totally, completely unfair!" she ranted.

"It's total bullshit, that's what it is." I replied as I finished stacking all of my reading, sketch, and music books into a pink leather box lying on my bed.

"I'm gonna miss you a lot Nevs! Now I'll actually have to talk to those girls you call_ friends_! I don't think you're parents know that they're punishing me just as much as you and it's unfair. As a matter of fact, it's illegal! You're pressing charges!" she announced.

"K! Chill, okay? And I can't press charges against my parents."

"The hell you can't! Aaron Carter did it, so you can too." She argued.

"Wow, freak out much? Besides, it's already set. My parents already paid for my tuition and dorm." I said, feeling like I'd been punched in the gut when I realized how far from home I'd be.

"Off the phone Nevaeh!" my mom called again.

"Almost ready!" I yelled down the stairs, "You heard the dragon lady K. I'd better go. See you at the airport?"

"Of course." She said before hanging up.

I tossed my phone in my Gucci purse and clasped the tiny silver lock on the pink box shut before grabbing my purse, box and stumbling into the hallway and hitting my head smack into my older brother's chest.

"Whoa there Nevs." He laughed as he steadied me and took the two largest luggage bags and tucked the box under his strong arm.

"Thanks Gregory." I replied as we made our way down the stairs into the large foyer.

"No prob little sis." He smiled, showing his trademark dimples that we both acquired from our dad, Jeff. Gregory and I shared so much resemblance that if he weren't two years older than I, we could pass for twins. He was tall, lean but built, had medium brown colored skin and had his blackish-brown hair shaved off.

We walked into the kitchen and found our parents scurrying around, grabbing all sorts of papers.

_So you yell at me nonstop, rushing me to get downstairs to go and yet you're not ready? _Was what I wanted to say, but instead settled for, "Can we go?"

"Of course, Hun. Let's go Marilyn." My dad said in his soft, soothing voice.  
My mom finished gathering her papers and slipped them into her patent leather briefcase/purse and we all huddled into my dad's white GMC Suburban.

xXx

When we arrived at Atlanta International airport, Katie was already there waiting for us. I noticed that her eyes were red, and her mascara was smeared beneath them, and her long blonde hair was put up in a high pony. Great, she's been crying, I thought. I hated it when Katie cried because it made it even easier for me to join in.

"Hey girl!" I smiled as I walked over and hugged her.

She hugged me back and smiled half-heartedly, "I really don't want you to go Neveah!"

"Believe me, I'm not looking forward to hanging around stuck-up, preppy, people either. But don't worry. My dad was telling me that if my advisors report that I've been on my extremely best behavior, they'll bring me back home for junior year." I added.

"Then for God's sake, please behave!" she smiled and hugged me again.

"I will for yours and mine too." I said, and we both laughed in unison.

"I hate to cut this little love fest short, but you do have a flight to catch Nevs." Gregory said, as he gestured to my parents at the counter checking my bags.

"Well this is it. This is really goodbye," she whispered, eyes welling with tears again.

"Until next year, and I promise that I'll text, Facebook, IM, e-mail, and use whatever else form of communication I can to stay in touch." I said, trying to be positive.

"Okay honey, here's your ticket. Are you ready?" my mom asked, handing me the thick paper.

"Yup." I replied as Katie and I hugged one last time. Then I moved to my dad, mom, and lastly Gregory. I was going to miss him the most.

"I think I may actually miss you Nevs." He joked as he ruffled my blackish-brown hair.

"Say what you want to Gregs. I know you're gonna miss me." I laughed as he pulled me close to him. They walked with me to the first security check point and from there I was alone. I blew them all kisses before making my way through the airport to gate 12B which was headed to Haverstraw, New York. I bought a strawberry smoothie from Smoothie King before I boarded the plane and took my seat beside the window. I pulled my knees close to my chest, turned my back towards the empty seat next to me and silently cried myself to sleep.


	2. New Chick on Campus

I woke to the sound of the captain's voice over the intercom, announcing that we'd be landing in five minutes. I grabbed my purse from the floor and pulled out my cell to text my parents, Katie, and Gregory. As I finished texting them, I noticed that the sky looked breathtaking from where I was. There was a huge dark navy cloud covering most of the sky, which was a dark orange and pink color, but a small portion of the setting sun still managed to remain in front of it. I grabbed my pink digital camera out of my purse and snapped a picture of it, disappointed that it didn't look anywhere near as beautiful to the eye. I soaked in all of it's beauty until we'd landed. When the captain went through the whole thank you for traveling with AirTran, I grabbed my purse and cardigan and made my way to the gate where my Aunt Josephine would be waiting for me. She smiled at me as soon as our eyes met and walked over to hug me. She looked different than since the last time I'd seen her. Instead of her short, conservative bob, her black hair was now elegantly flowing down to her caramel shoulders in ringlets, and she'd traded in her comfy loafers for Prada heels. Basically, my aunt was _hot!_ Like _smokin hot!_

"Hey Auntie." I smiled.

"Nevaeh, you look great! How long has it been?" she asked, beaming.

"I think last Christmas." I said, noticing how the smile never disappeared from her glowing face.

"Well I'm so glad that you're here. Your campus is only thirty minutes away from my house, so I can probably see you more often now." She said with unhidden excitement in her voice.

We walked towards the baggage claim area where my bags were already pulled to the side waiting for me. What really caught my attention was the gorgeous man standing beside them. He was tall, light skinned, and short curly brown hair. His most extensive features were his olive green eyes that stood out against his russet skin. I was even more surprised to see him make his way towards us then wrap his arm around my aunt's waist, and then he kissed her smack on the lips! Who was this guy?

"Nevaeh, this is James. He works in my office and we've been dating for about-"

"Eight months." He cut her off and smiled. "It's so nice to meet you Nevaeh. She's been going on about you for weeks." He smiled and extended his hand to me.

"Well it certainly is a pleasure to meet you as well." I replied, eyeing my aunt in a way that said she had some explaining to do.

"Well, let's get your bags loaded onto the truck and get you home." He suggested as he grabbed two of my luggages and I grabbed the other. He led us to my aunt's familiar black Cadillac Escalade and loaded my bags in the trunk. As we drove down the dark, vast road Josie was talking to me about my new school, Wesleyan Academy. She told me about the campus, academics, and athletic achievements. Because she went their throughout all of her whole high school years, she knew almost everything about it. It was about a forty-five minute drive to the campus, and when we finally arrived we pulled up to a huge wrought iron gate that had a pass code box located next to it. My aunt typed in the numbers 178650 and the gate opened smoothly revealing the large, beautiful campus. There were multiple buildings spread around with plenty of space in between them. James pulled into the lot in front of a building named "Gilfillan Hall".

"So this is the girl's dorm building. Your dorm advisor, Tiffany, has your keys and class schedule." Josie explained as we made our way into the foyer. It was very traditional; there was a huge tan couch in the middle of the floor, a LG flat screen TV mounted against a fire place on the walls that were painted taupe, a beautiful chandelier hanging above, other decorative home accessories, and the smell of spiced apples lingered in the air which made the room feel cozier than it looked. 

After meeting my new dorm advisor, James and Josie helped me get my bags to my new dorm room and said that they'd call me to check on me tomorrow. The halls were empty so I figured that the other girls were either asleep or out at some lame night class. Not interested in learning anything at the moment, I made my way to my new dorm and unlocked the door to find a room that had olive-colored walls and magenta, burnt orange and golden accent colors throughout the room. There was a vintage black chandelier hanging from the ceiling and magenta curtains hung down in front of the wide windows that looked out to the campus lake. It was beautiful! I managed to get my bags in the room and stumbled to my surprisingly plush bed. There was a set of sheets and pillow shams folded neatly at the head of the bed. I pulled the soft white sheets over the mattress and set the decorative shams up neatly before a girl stumbled out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her dripping wet body and hair.

"Oh! Gees you scared me!" she shrieked, clutching her chest.

"Sorry, I didn't know anybody was here." I apologized.

"It's okay. You just startled me that's all." She smiled.

"I'm Willow, like the tree." She smiled as she unwrapped the towel around her head and let her dark auburn hair fall to her shoulders.

"That's really pretty. I'm Nevaeh, heaven spelled backwards."

"Wow, now _that's _really pretty." She replied as she rummaged through her dresser next to her bed.

"Thanks," I said as I started unpacking my clothes and placing them my dresser. "So tell me, what's it like here? Is it really as bad as people make boarding school seem?" I asked.

"Are you kidding me? This place is amazing! The food is amazing, the classes are challenging but easy to pass, the guys are gorgeous, and the staff is pretty chill." She said as she slipped on a t-shirt and cotton shorts.

"Seriously?" I asked amazed, "What about parties?"

"Ever been to a college sorority party?" she asked.

"That fun?" I laughed, remembering the night my mom caught me hooking up with a college guy. That's why I'm here and I think I'm gonna like it.

"Wait till you meet our guys. They're so hot and plus their athletic, smart and rich. What more can you ask for?" she beamed.

"Not much." I agreed.

"Oh, let me see your schedule." She said pointing to the folded paper lying on my bed.

I handed it to her and watched as her eyes scanned the page until she finally said, "You scored all of the really good classes. I wish I had photography! The only class we have together is English, but our other classes are pretty close together."

"Thank God! I was freakin' out that I'd be a lost puppy tomorrow." I said, a wave of relief washing through me.

"Don't worry girl, I got your back." She smiled as she pulled out her iPhone and sent a text message.

"Thanks. Um, speaking of class, what time do we have to get up in the morning?"

She laughed and replied, "Around seven. We have eight classes and the day ends at 3:30. Pls, we get an hour lunch."

"Got it. By the way, where is everybody else? The whole campus looks like it's empty."

"The guys varsity football team had an away game." She explained.

"Enough said." I said grabbing some pj's and heading for the shower.

xXx

When I got out of the shower, I found Willow on her Apple notebook.

"What are you doing?" I asked curiously as I walked over to the desk she sat at.

"Here," she said handing me the laptop, "These are some of the hottest guys that go to our school."

I took a look at the picture on the screen of a group of guys standing on a dock smiling and acting goofy. Willow was right, they were _all_ hot. I double clicked on each of their faces to get a closer look at each of them and found one guy that was incredibly cute.

"Who's he?" I asked, taking in his green eyes.

"That's Trad Turner. Total hottie but also a total jerk. Don't get involved with him, he's bad news." she said, rolling her eyes.

I took her word for that and finished scrolling across the page to see a guy that was so…beautiful. He had shaggy brown hair, extremely tan skin, and a pair of violet eyes that'd make your heart melt.

"Who's he?" I asked, my eyes glued to the screen.

"That's Aiden Gershum. Extremely hot, plays the guitar, amazing artist, and he's a jock. He's every girl's dream guy, but he's really quiet." She said.

"Oh." Was all I could say.

I was still mesmerized by his eyes. They were so deep and familiar in a way.

"If you're lucky maybe you'll get a class with him. He seems like a nice guy but it's hard to tell because of how reserved he is." She said.

"Does he not have any friends or something?" I asked.

"Oh, he's got friends. Don't get me wrong, the guy's a total stud. All the guys wanna be him and all the girls wanna be with him. He just doesn't pay attention to it." She said.

On paper, he sounded like the perfect guy but I'm sure he's just like the rest. A total, complete jerk.

"Well, we may wanna catch some sleep before tomorrow, especially if you want to familiarize yourself with the campus." She said as she climbed under her magenta down comforter.

"Yeah, goodnight." I said before slipping under my own and turning the lamp off on my desk.

xXx

I woke to the sound of my phone playing Up, up, & Away by Kid Cudi. It was 7 am which meant that I had an hour to get dressed, eat breakfast, and learn the campus. I scurried to my closet and pulled out a pair of dark jeans and a sunshine yellow baby doll shirt. I hopped in the shower and straightened my hair. By the time I got out of the bathroom Willow was neatly setting the pillows on her bed.

"Good morning! Ready to grab some breakfast?" She asked brightly. At least one of us is a morning person, I thought to myself.

"Yeah, I'm starving." I moaned, hearing my stomach growl.

"Okay,

Do you have your key?" she asked before she turned from her dresser drawer.

I grabbed it out of my Coach Sash purse and dangled them, "Yup."

"'K, let's go then." She said grabbing her red patent leather bag that matched her top.

She led me back down the series of hallways that I passes last night and into a large kitchen area that was painted a warm shade of taupe. The smell of pancakes and bacon wafted through the air, making my mouth water.

"Okay, so this is basically the kitchen for the whole dorm. The staff keeps the fridge stocked with all types of foods and there's plenty of room for cooking." She said handing me a plate and glass cup.

"So who cooked these then, if we make our own food?" I asked, not really caring as I took a bite of the crispy bacon.

"Senior. They're always surprising us with yummy foods and desserts." She smiled and took a seat at the granite countertop.

We had just finished clearing our plates away when _they _walked in.

There were three of them. The girl on the left had spray-tanned skin and long dark hair, while the other had jet black hair and chocolate skin. The one in the middle, their "leader" I guessed, had blonde hair that rested just below her shoulders. Their eyes immediately met mine as they approached us.

"You must be the new girl." The "leader" said.

"I am." I replied.

"Well I'm Logan and these are my friends Kennington and Aysia." She said politely, gesturing to the two girls beside her.

"Pleasure. I'm Nevaeh." I said.

"Well it's nice to meet you Nevaeh. If you ever wanna hang out or get off the campus, you now know who to text." She smiled, iPhone in hand.

"Thanks." I laughed as we swapped phones.

"Okay, well we have to get to Peer Leadership so we'll see you later. Bye Willow." She smiled and sauntered off.

"Yeah, those are the most popular juniors on campus and to make them even more popular, they're totally cool." She said as she led me out of the building and into the warm sun.

We toured the campus for about twenty minutes, covering all the main buildings.

"If you need any help, feel free to ask one of the teachers or just text me." She said as we walked to our English class.

"'K, thanks girl." I said, grateful that I got a nice roommate.

English class was actually very intriguing. We were studying censorship in the media and how it affects our daily lives. The rest of the day just flew by. Guys were always talking to me and questioning me while the some of the girls made faces and stared. I met hot guy after hot guy but never once saw the violet-eyed guy from the photo.


	3. The VioletEyed God

**A/N: **Hello there chickens! I know that it's been a while since I've updated but somebody kidnapped Aiden and Nevaeh (AKA my flash drive)…I literally was on my knees crying. But no worries! They're back in my hands now and are safe If this story is _still_ boring you, I promise that it gets better in the next chapter (trust me!). Enjoy this chapter, I made it especially for you so read and review and I'll post the newer ones!

Special Thanks to _Oriana de la Rose_ for outstanding talent and inspiration & _The Original Vintage Vamp_(AKA Mum) for all the encouragement

xXx

When lunch came around, Willow and I sat at a table with six other people whose names I didn't even bother to catch. I'm terrible with names. The courtyard that we were eating in was beautiful, just like the rest of the campus. There was a lake not too far from where we were sitting and flowers galore. The light breeze had been blowing all day and now that it'd warmed up it, felt pretty good. Willow and I had sprawled out on the grass and let the sun warm our skin. I wasn't trying to get my caramel skin any darker so I slipped my black sunglasses from Express on. As I checked my phone to see what time it was, I noticed a tall figure approaching from behind a tree. I turned my body all the way around and was knocked breathless by _him. _ The violet-eyed guy, whose name I couldn't seem to remember, was walking across the courtyard, sandy brown hair blowing, lips curved into a crooked smile, and a walk so elegant that it belonged on a runway. He was a wearing a long-sleeved gray shirt, revealing his amazing forearms and dark, designer jeans with gray New Balances on.

My breath hitched as he turned his head in my direction and let his gaze settle on me. It seemed like everything else around us stopped, like it was just the two of us. He'd stopped walking now and his violet eyes were holding mine, and then before I knew it, Willow was in my ear calling my name.

"Nevaeh? Nevaeh! What are you staring at?" she asked, pulling ,myself out of whatever stupor I was in.

"Nothing." I mumbled as I watched Mr. Mystery's figure head to the table full of jocks.

xXx

This school isn't all that bad. After lunch, which is an hour long, there are only two classes left and then you have the rest of the day to yourself. My last two classes were history and photography, the only two classes that I didn't have with Willow. Great. I walked to the Fine Arts Building and found the high school art room. It was full of amazing snapshots, paintings, prints, and more. They were all beautiful, but there was one painting that caught my eye. It was a portrait of a girl with long dark hair looking out a window with her back turned so that you couldn't see her face. It was amazing how it looked real and all the colors were blended the right way. I stood there and admired its beauty for God only knows how long when someone walked up and stood beside me.

"You must really like this one." The voice murmured soft as silk.

"How can you tell?" I asked, keeping my eyes on the picture.

"Well you've been standing here for the past five minutes…in a trance." He replied, with a smile in his voice.

I let out a nervous laugh and bit my lip, completely embarrassed.

"No need to be embarrassed about it. I think it's cute that you like my art." He said.

I turned to smile sweetly at him and tell him it was no problem. Instead, I stopped breathing and was blinded by pure beauty. It was _him,_ violet eyes and all. He was even more gorgeous up-close.

"Aiden Gershum." He introduced, extending his long, tan arm.

"Um, Nevaeh." Was all I managed to get out, meeting my hand with his.

"It's a pleasure." He murmured, raising my hand to his soft lips and placing a light kiss on them. My skin spiked where his lips had once been

I forgot to mention that as he did this, his beautiful eyes never once left mines. I felt like I'd seen them before, but decided that it was all in my head. We stood there gazing at each other for an impossibly long time until I broke the silence, "This is yours?" I asked, gently running my fingers over the textured strokes.

"It is." He replied, keeping his eyes on me.

"It's beautiful." I said softly, smiling at him.

He laughed softly and it was the most beautiful sound in the world, "Thanks."

Aiden held my gaze for about ten more seconds, smiled gently, and sauntered to his seat as the bell rang.

"Well, you must be Nevaeh." Said the extremely short woman in a voice that resembled a Disney Princess.

"I am." I replied politely.

"Such a pretty name. I'm Mrs. Mays. If you need anything just let me know, dear." She smiled sweetly.

"Thank you so much." I said and took the empty seat across from Aiden's back.

When I glanced at him, he was looking at me in a way that made my whole body feel tingly. I looked down shyly and slid onto the stool. Ms. Mays introduced the new assignment which was to capture a photo of someone that was completely unaware of it but still have the person look photogenic. Basically, it was like one of those photo shoots where the model is looking away and acts likes she's paying no attention to the camera. It sounded easy enough. We were assigned cameras and then had the rest of the class to free-sketch or paint. Aiden had moved to a canvas and made graceful, professional strokes across the fabric. I decided to stay in my seat and paint an abstract design on my sketchbook.

Art is actually very therapeutic, I released all of the negative energy that I've been bottling up ever since I got here and cleared my head as I sat there mixing and spreading the paints across the thick paper while time melted away. I felt like I could sit at the table all day and pain my soul out…then the bell rang. Reluctantly, I placed my sketchbook cover on the drying rack and put all of my paint supplies in the sink and turned on my heel to walk out the door. Instead I walked smack into Aiden...and his cup of paint-water.

"Shit!" I whisper-shrieked, "I'm _so _sorry!" I said, panicking as I scrambled for the napkins next to the sink.

"Hey, it's no problem." He said, not sounding angry at all. I looked up, cheeks burning, and found him lifting his long-sleeved tee over his head. That was a huge mistake on his part. You see, I have an unnatural obsession with abs and God this guy had abs. I was lucky that his white tee-shirt fell back down and covered them; I was beginning to fall into _another_ trance.

"No harm done." He smiled gently as he balled his shirt up and tucked in under his shoulder.

"Here, give it to me. I'll give it my aunt to have it dry cleaned." I managed to get out.

He held his hand up in protest, "Nevaeh, it's fine."

"Are you sure?" I asked sighing in defeat.

"Accidents happen." He smiled again.

I sighed, looked down and muttered, "Thanks."

With one last look, I hastily walked out of the building, and to my locker cursing to myself the whole way. I'd finally gotten to talk _him _and completely screwed it up.

I grabbed my history stuff out of my locker and walked in the class just before the bell rang.

_What the hell? _I thought to myself. Aiden was sitting in one of the desks, relaxed as can be.

I was shocked to see him there, because I could've sworn that I left art before him. I _know _I did. And I basically sprinted to my locker! There's no way he could've made it to class before me without seeing him. I bit my lip in confusion and slowly walked to the empty seat in the back of the class, avoiding eye contact with Aiden at the risk of tripping and falling flat on my face. Just as I sat down, the teacher Mr. Shaheen, fled through the room with a baseball coffee mug and a stack of papers in his hand.

"Sorry I'm late class. Before we get started, I'd like to welcome our newest edition to Stony Point, Ms. Nevaeh Williams." He smiled at me.

I shyly but politely smiled at him as I felt the _entire_ class's gaze on me. There was a small section of jocks in the corner who were all making flirty faces and smiling at me…ew.

"I know that you all have had a busy week, so I've decided that we're going to spend the next couple of days watching the movie _Biko._ It's about racism in Africa and all of you Denzel Washington fans will enjoy it." He said, settling behind his computer. I noticed that his entire desk was covered in Boston Red Sox fan gear. I'm a Yankees fan and this is New York. Is this man crazy? I could tell that we were gonna have _many _sports debates when baseball season came around.

By the end of class, we'd gotten through about a fourth of the movie and it was pretty good, so history flew by in the blink of an eye. When the bell rang, I booked it out the door, to my locker, and back to my dorm to tell Willow all about my encounter with the violet-eyed hottie.

xXx

"Omigod! You're telling me that _Aiden Gershum _actually talked to you?" Willow screamed.

"Uh, yeah. I mean, he didn't really say anything worth repeating." I said, not nearly as excited as she was.

"What are you saying? Do you realize that the hottest guy on campus talked to you, the new girl. Like, that's major! He _must _be interested in you!" she shrieked again.

I let out an amused sound, "And what makes you say that?"

"Nevaeh, Aiden Gershum doesn't talk to just anybody! I would know. I've been trying to get him to say two words to me for the past three years! Anything he says is worth repeating!" yes, she was still shrieking.

"Well, he didn't say much. I'm pretty sure I cut the convo short after walking into him and spilling paint water all over him." I said, feeling embarrassed all over again.

"Wow, talk about a Bella moment." She laughed, running her fingers through her long auburn hair.

"Okay, I'm not _that _clumsy." I laughed.

"Whatever you say Harls." She joined in laughing.

I hopped off my bed and pulled my iTouch out of my purse and plugged it into Willow's dock and put my Kid Cudi playlist on.

"Oh, I forgot to mention that after I spilled water on his shirt, I caught a lovely view at his six pack." I said, smiling smugly.

"No. Fucking. Way." She said, enunciating all three words.

"And you're gonna love this. He has crotch bones." I gushed, smirk growing bigger.

Willow's jaw was just about hanging on the bed, "How's that for a Bella moment. I'm pretty sure she couldn't get Edward shirtless until a _year _after they met. I got him on the first day." I bragged even more.

"Don't talk to me anymore Nevaeh." Willow said, her face as serious as her tone.

"Why not?" I shrieked, suddenly regretting all of my bragging.

"Because you are one lucky bitch." She smiled and then laughed.

I joined in, laughing more out of relief than humor, "You're crazy. Let's get outta her. I wanna see more of the campus." I suggested.

"Yeah, let's get food too." She said.

"You know what? I think we're gonna get along just fine Willow." I laughed, as we both grabbed our purses and left the room.

xXx

"I never got to ask you, but why'd you decide to switch schools mid-semester?" Willow asked, licking the whipped cream off of her finger.

"My parents think that I'm going through a "rebellious teen phase". I said rolling my eyes and using air quotes.

"How so?" she asked again.

"Well, I snuck out and went to a college party, got a little drunk, and hooked up with a college guy…when I was supposed to be grounded." I said, picking off a piece of my cheese Danish.

"Well, at least you had a shit-load of fun before you got busted." She laughed.

"Psh, yeah! It was hella fun and I'd do it again if I could!" I managed to get out through laughs.  
We were so caught up in our own little conversation that neither of us noticed somebody approach our table.

"Hey Nevaeh." A familiar, velvety voice murmured.

My head shot up and found Aiden standing behind be, hands on the back of my chair, the golden light from the setting sun making his flawless skin glow along with his eyes.

"Hey Aiden." I stammered. Just then, Willow cleared her throat obviously wanting an introduction.

"Oh, um this is my roomie Willow. I'm pretty sure that you've seen her around." I said.

"Oh, I know Willow." He said, his mouth raising into an adorable crooked smile. Haha, _crooked smile._ "One of my baseball buddies never stops talking about you."

"Who?" Willow asked a little too eagerly.

"Sandino Rodriguez." He said, the word sounding like magic as he enunciated each of them, rolling every R.

"The senior?"

"That's him." He laughed and gestured to the tall mocha colored guy standing just outside the café.

"I'll be right back." She said, halfway out the door before she could even finish the sentence. I can't believe she just did that. She left me alone with him. Great.

"So, do you like it here so far?" he asked casually, sitting down across from me.

"Um, yeah. I actually like it a lot." I admitted, playing with my hair out of nervousness.

"Any favorite classes?"

"Hmm, well considering that it's only been one day, I'm gonna have to say Art." I said, knowing that I only like that class because he was in it and we sat extremely close to each other.

He let out an extremely seductive chuckle and ran his fingers through his sandy brown hair.

"What's so funny?" I asked, growing more relaxed.

"Nothing." He said, laughing some more.

"No, I wanna laugh too, so feel free to share." I smiled, curling my hair around my index finger.

"It's nothing." He said again, but I could still see the smile his eyes. Oh, those eyes. They were so beautiful. It reminded me of the lavender field just behind my grandparent's house. They were so dark, so lovely, so seductive…

"What is it?" he asked, cocking his head to the side.

"It's just, your eyes are so…beautiful. I've never seen an eye color so unique." I said, now playing with the locket on my neck.

He looked at me hesitantly, like he was going to say something extremely deep. But instead, he smiled gently and replied, "Thanks, but I think_ your _eyes are more…memorable." He smiled that crooked smile.

"I can't describe the color. It's like gray and green mixed together, kind of makes them…glow. And then when your in just the right light, they're a shade of hazel. " He said, his violet eyes boring straight through mine.

I bit my lip and smiled, "Wow, nobody has _ever_ payed that much attention to my eye color."

"Maybe it's just me. I find them hard to resist." He murmured, leaning across the table, closer to me. All this time that I'd been looking at him, I'd never given the rest of his facial features enough credit. Not only were his eyes irresistible, but he had a million dollar smile, airbrushed-looking skin, those perfect, pearly white straight teeth, and my personal fave, that I'm-a-man jaw line. There was really only one word to describe him physically. Perfect.

I smiled gently and leaned forward onto the table, "Thank you…again."

We were leaning extremely close and gazing at each other like two lost lovers. Ha, lovers. Right. _There's no such think as love, only in fairy tales_, I thought to myself. While I was chanting this in my head, he looked at me with such an adoring smile that it was hard to believe that love didn't exist. Of course I'm not saying that I was in love with him, I mean I'd just met him a few hours ago.

"You know what?" he murmured, inching closer to me.

"What?" I asked, lifting my chin up slightly.

"I-" he started, but was interrupted by his iPhone playing Let It Rock by Kevin Rudolph and Lil Wayne.

He sighed, tapped his screen and looked at it, "have to go." he sighed.

"It's fine," I smiled gently, "I have a bunch to catch up on." I said glancing at my phone screen to see what time it was.

"Well, I'll see you around, Nevaeh." He smiled crookedly.

"Only if you're lucky, Aiden." I replied, flashing him a sweet smile and walking towards the door looking for Willow. She was sitting in front of that Sandino Rodriguez guy, legs crossed, hair-twirling, and full fledged flirting with him. It looked like she was making some serious progress, so I sent her a text saying "Get it girl." and headed back to the dorm room to catch upon some major sleep, and maybe get lucky and have a dream of Aiden (wow, I sound like a creeper).


	4. God I Hate Secrets

I'd just gotten out the shower when my phone buzzed. I looked on the screen and saw that Katie sent me a text: _You remember Eric Man right?_

_My ex? Of course I remember him. Complete, total asshole._ I texted back.

_Well Tanisha White doesn't seem to think so. They're dating! _She replied.

_Ew! Why would he ever wanna date __**that**__? She's gross…_

_He says that he's always had a crush on her, but personally, I think he's doing it to get over you._

_Haha, how so? _Itexted back_._

_She looks JUST LIKE YOU! The only difference is that you're pretty and she's drop dead ugly_. She replied.

_We do NOT look alike. I'm not disgustingly skinny and plus my hair is real, not a weave. _I joked_._

_Well still, if you were on crack, starved yourself, and slaughtered a horse for your hair, you two would be twins. You'd be the prettier one of course _

_Um, thanks? But you know what Katie? We're gonna go to hell if we keep being so mean to people… _I replied laughing softly.

_A wise chick once told me, if being real means being the meanest bitch in the school, I'm as mean as they get. _She replied quoting me.

_LMFAO! Thanks for quoting me. _I replied_._

_But seriously, that doesn't bother you?_

_I don't give two fucks about Eric anymore. I mean it's one thing to tell all his buddies that he dumped me is already messed up, but to go around school and grab a doppelganger to replace me is just…weird. Not to mention obsessive. _I replied quickly.

_Haha, soo true Nevs. I miss ya girl! _she replied back_._

_I miss you too chica. We'll talk soon okay and I'll be home in no time. Good behavior here is gonna be too easy. _I text with a smile on my face_._

_Sounds good! Peace out chica! _

_Byeeeeee! _I texted back, ending the conversation.

I tossed my phone back on my bed and headed for my dresser and pulled out some cotton shorts and a tank top to slip on. I looked in the mirror to do something about my almost black hair. It looked like a bird's nest was resting on top of my head, so I yanked my brush through my wavy curls and scrunched it with some mousse. I had a little bit of homework so I decided to do it outside. I grabbed my English binder, cell phone, and key chain and headed out the door. I found a spot under a shady tree and sat down, plugged my iTouch in and started writing a thesis for my censorship paper. I'd been sitting there for about ten minutes when I heard someone approach me. Hopeful, I turned around and found an extremely cute guy behind me. He was tall, had chocolate brown hair and eyes to match. He was that _jerk _from the picture, the one that Willow told me was trouble.

"Hey. I'm Trad Wilson. I heard that you were new, so I thought I'd introduce myself." He said innocently.

"That's nice." I giggled, "I'm Nevaeh."

"It's nice to meet you Nevaeh. I see that you're busy, so I'll make this quick. There's a party tomorrow night and I just wanted to give you an invite." He said, smiling sweetly. I don't understand why Willow said he was a jerk, so far he was acting like a total sweetheart.

"That's sweet. Thanks." I replied, smiling up at him.

"No problem, so you'll be there?" he asked, a hint of excitement sparkled in his eyes.

"Sure. I'll go." I said.

"Okay then. I'll see you around." He smiled as he turned to leave.

"Bye." I said sweetly and went back to typing my thesis.

About thirty minutes later, I got bored and had nearly finished writing my paper so I decided to head back to the dorm, but I took the long way on the nature trail instead. It was getting dark and the sun had finally disappeared, leaving the sky 3 different shades of purples and blues. The reason that I paid so much attention to the color was because they reminded me of Aiden's eye color; beautiful, majestic, rare, and unique. Although I was caught up in my own thoughts, I was still aware of my surroundings.

I thought I heard somebody's footsteps following close behind me so I turned around, but nobody was there. I kept walking but picked up the pace, noticing how there was nobody on the trail, which made me even more paranoid. There were trees on either side of the barely lit dirt path. It'd been a few minutes since I'd heard the footsteps, but I heard something else this time; a leaf crunch behind me. My breath hitched and my heart pounded as I heard someone else's breathing behind me and the heat emanating from their body. Heart racing, chest heaving, and eyes watering, I slowly turned around and was face to face with a pair of crimson red eyes.

I didn't even have time to scream before they advanced on me, and caused me to fall backwards. I let out a steel-cutting shriek as the pair of eyes lowered down to my level. There face was dimly lit but all I could make out was a extremely pale face behind the red glow of their eyes. My fingernails dug into the damp dirt as I tried to back away from the advancing stranger.

With a disgusting and menacing growl, whatever was terrorizing me raised it's head high in the air, revealing a pair of razor sharp…fangs! I shut my eyes tight hoping that when I opened them, I'd be asleep in my dorm. I was _so _wrong. Realization hit me as the thing, in a lighting quick movement, swung their head back down to my face. Luckily for me, just before their canines hit my throat, something flew across my chest taking the creature on top of me out and sent me flying backwards. There was a series of lightning fast movements, menacing growls, and the sound of tearing flesh in the air. Finally snapping out of my fascinated stupor, I took off down the nature trail like a bat out of hell only pausing only to get a glance at my rescuer's face only to see a pair of shining plum-colored eyes.

I sprinted off of the dark trail as fast as I could, my mind in a thousand places. Whatever was going on back there wasn't…normal. It was far past normal. I mean _fangs_? Come on now. I love Twilight as much as the next girl, but there's a line between reality and imagination and there was no chance in hell that that incident was a apart of my imagination. Finally, I stumbled out of the woods and onto the sidewalk that was right in front of my dorm building.

Doubled-over, I caught my breath and let my heart restart. Still shaken, I rushed through the wooden doors of the building and down the hall to my dorm. I pulled my keys out of my satchel with utter difficulty because of how hard my hands were shaking, and let myself in. As soon as I was in, I locked the door, slammed my back against it and slid down to the floor. I sat there for a few seconds, staring at nothing in particular, until I broke out into a fit of convulsions and silent tears. I only had a few minutes to try and sort things out until I heard someone's footsteps approach.

Of course I freaked out, but when I heard the keys jingling, I let myself relax a little. I quickly hopped on my feet and acted like I'd just gotten in myself. Willow flung open the door with a wide grin plastered on her face. Obviously things had gotten pretty far with Sandino since I'd last seen her.

"Oh. My. God!" she shrieked.

"Tell me _everything!"_ I demanded. I was still a little shaken, so my voice wasn't as enthusiastic as I intended it to be.

"Let's just say that I have plans Saturday night!" she said.

"Yay! Speaking of plans, are you going to that party tomorrow? That Trad guy invited me. He's actually pretty sweet." I said, rummaging through my backpack so she wouldn't notice my shaking hands.

"Um, yeah I'm going. Nevs, are you okay?" Willow asked.

I obviously wasn't doing a good job at hiding the fact that something had scared the hell out of me.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I lied, my voice squeaking at the end.

"So you expect me to believe that you shake like this on a regular basis?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm just cold. I was drinking a shake a minute ago. Aiden and I-"

"Oh yeah! What happened after I left?" she pressed.

This was perfect. I'd just found out Willow's weak spot. As soon as I mentioned Aiden's name, she dropped the topic about me being so shaken. I went on and on about our conversation until Willow was satisfied.

About an hour later, I'd been in the shower, finished all of the homework that was assigned, and was drop dead tired. I called my parents, Gregory, and Katie and spoke to them briefly before I finally fell asleep. I felt bad for Willow though because while I was about to catch up on some major sleep, she was still typing her English paper. I quickly slipped into unconsciousness in a matter of minutes.

xXx

_It was dark, extremely dark. I was walking back on the trail that had nearly traumatized me earlier. In front of me, there was an extremely gorgeous view of a beach glowing by the setting sun. Drawn to its_

_beauty, I took a step towards the powder white sand. As I got closer, I noticed a human shape sitting on the sand, just inches away from the crashing waves. Although their back was towards me, I could recognize that hair color from a million miles away. I softly whispered his name, and he turned to face me, smiling in response. Eager, I took quicker steps toward the shore. I felt something catch my bare ankle mid-step and tripped catching myself with my hands just before I hit the ground. Thinking that I'd keep from hurting myself, the jagged edge of a protruding branch made a tiny cut on my neck. As a tiny droplet of blood rolled down my neck and splattered to the muddy ground, Aiden began to approach me, a fascinated look in his lavender eyes. When he caught sight of the scarlet stain on my skin, his eyes widened, then narrowed and grew dark. Focused only on my neck, he slowly leaned down to my face, and murmured in a voice as smooth as velvet, "Just one taste." _

_Lowering his face to my chest where the blood had rolled to, he gently ran his tongue across my skin. In a blinding quick movement his piercing eyes were back on mine, he titled his head back as two razor sharp fangs appeared in the sliver of light bleeding through the tree leaves. A fierce snarl ripped through his chest and as he zeroed in on my neck. That's when I forced my eyes open._

I was lying in my bed, gasping for air, covered in a cold sweat. Relief washed over me as I realized that it'd only been a dream. Willow stirred in her sleep as I tiptoed to the bathroom to get a glass of water. My heart was still pounding as I filled the small cup with the tap. I though to myself, _what the hell was I doing on that path again after what had just happened to me? Why was Aiden there? And most importantly, why was he a vampire?_

These questions ran through my mind as I quickly downed the glass of water and retied my hair in a ponytail. Mentally and physically exhausted, I made my way back to my bed and settled myself under the covers. To my frustration, although my eyes wanted to close, my mind protested as the dream and it's possible meanings ran through my mind. Needing to clear my head, I pulled my iTouch off my nightstand and hit my favorite play list. As the chorus to _Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart_ by Alicia Keys began to play my eyes drooped close, and one thought ran through my mind; _there is definitely something different about Aiden Gershum._


End file.
